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Summit County Art Forum Unveils ‘Earth and Sky’

A new exhibit in the Summit County Commons showcases 10 local artists, with an opening Jan. 24

Contact:Rita Neubauer970-389-1045, ritabneubauer@yahoo.com

SUMMIT COUNTY – The Summit County Art Forum is unveiling a new exhibit at the Summit County Commons that celebrates the great outdoors and the great unknown through the work of 10 local artists.

“Earth and Sky” kicks off with a free opening at 4 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 24, in the public display space on the second level of the County Commons building on Peak One Drive in Frisco. The opening is free to the public, and light refreshments will be served. All ages are welcome.

The event will include a presentation by astrophotographer Daniel McVey, whose work is featured in the exhibit. McVey grew up in Philadelphia, where light pollution made it difficult to discern stars in the night sky. His inspiration for photographing celestial bodies struck after his arrival in Colorado, during a meteor shower he viewed from atop Boreas Pass.

“I so badly wanted to be able to record the show I was witnessing,” McVey said. “A spark was born.”

Also on display at the County Commons is work by “The Bag Ladies,” a group of more than 25 volunteers who create colorful wine bags, purses and aprons that the Family & Intercultural Resource Center sells at the Dillon Farmers Market, the Bag Shop in Dillon and several stores in Summit County. The group has raised $100,000 for the FIRC’s food bank and housing assistance program.

Sky, nature and wildlife are passions of photographer John Mirro, longtime Silverthorne resident and current president of the board of Summit Public Radio and TV. His image in the exhibit was captured from the Summit Public Radio and TV site, located at 12,600 feet on Baldy Mountain.

Bill Linfield started with photographic film 40 years ago. He is a regular contributor to 9News and the Summit Daily News and often displays his work on canvas.

Todd Powell returns to many of the same locations season after season to examine nature’s never-ending transformation and transitions. “For me, photography is an adventure,” he said.

Earth and sky served as inspiration for the late Charles des Moineaux (1899 - 1994). The former art director for AT&T and president of the Denver Artists Guild was an avid outdoorsman, according to his son Leon Joseph Littlebird, local songwriter, storyteller and recording artist. “I watched him painting one day, and he said, ‘Every stroke of my brush is a prayer of gratitude to the beauty of nature.’”

Nature’s “simplicity and complexity” motivate glass artist Joe Patane, who enjoys traversing the Rocky Mountains by snowboard or in his ’64 Impala. Born in upstate New York, he made Colorado his home eight years ago. He displays goblets, vases, pendants and light fixtures.

Christina Davis expresses herself with vivid colors and loves twisting and changing the reality of a scene. “I am just beginning to explore abstract painting and find it very exciting,” she said. “Seeing the world in just patterns, shapes and colors is challenging, yet fascinating.”

Katie Romanoski, administrator at Lord of the Mountains Lutheran Church, shows silk paintings with natural dyes. The banners normally hang in the sanctuary of Lord of the Mountains and reflect the passing of liturgical seasons.

Susan Simon was raised in the Iowa countryside and has been interested for many years in the play of light, shapes and spiritual elements. Her imagery is a “mix of magic, natural wonders and simple pleasures.”

Jamie Callahan, a graphic designer and local business owner, is showing a small painting with a big sky. “I have always been interested in how abstract painting and graphic design intersect,” he said.